Work-controlling mechanism.



J. P. WEIS. WORK CONTROLLING MECHANISM.

v WINIHIIHllIlllllllllllllllllllllllllllllIIllIHIIIHIIII Patented Apr.25, 1911.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

J. P. Wm.

WORK CONTROLLING MECHANISM.

APPLIOATION IILED AUG. 24, 1905.

Patented Apr. 25, 1911.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

'IIIIIIIAH' J, P. WEIS.

WORK CONTROLLING MECHANISM. APPLIO ATION FILED AUG. 24, 1905.

990,41 1 Patented Apr; 25, 1911.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

parish stares PATENT crates.

JOHN P. WEIS, OF NYACK, NEW YORL, ASSIC-NOR TO lvIE'lEOPOLITAN SEWINGMACHINE COMPANY, OF NYACK, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

WORK-CONTROLLING NIECI-IANISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed August 24, 1905.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN P. WEIS, a citizen of the United States,residing in Nyack, county of Rockland, and State of New York, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in W Ork-Controlling Mechanisms,of which the following is a description.

This invention relates to sewing machines and especially to the type ofmachines provided with mechanism for making an over edge stitch.

Among the objects of this invention the following may be noted: toprovide means for retarding the work during its passage over thecloth-plate so as to produce small puckers, or shirring at the stitchingpoint, whereby ornamental edects may be produced in the body of thework, or along the edges of the latter, or whereby one piece of work maybe fulled or shirred upon the body or edge of another; to provide meanswhereby shirring or fulling of the work may be produced by the mereadjustment of the throat plate and this to a controlled and regulateddegree; to provide mechanism by means of which shirring or fulling canbe produced without affecting the operation of the feeding mechanism;and to provide means whereby, in an overedge stitching machine, thethread for the lower stitch-forming devices may be easily led andproperly guided to position for threading and stitching purposes.

With the above and other objects in view, which will be detailed duringthe course of this description, my invention consists in the parts,features and combinations of ele ments hereinafter described andclaimed.

leferring to the drawings: Figure 1 is a top plan view of so much of themachine as is deemed necessary to illustrate my iuvention, thepresser-bar being in section and the overhanging arm being shown removedand its base in section; Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the throat-plate,certain parts carried thereby being shown in a different position fromthat of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a transverse section on the line 55 of Fig. 2,and showing the presser-foot and needle in cooperative position; Fig. 4is a view similar to Fig. 3 showing the adjustable throat-plate in twopositions, one represented by dotted lines; Fig. is a longitudinalsection taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 4t; Fig. (3 is a bottom plan ofthe throat-plate; Fig. 7 is a top plan of the adjusting device for thethroat-plate; Fig. 8 is a rear end elevation of the throatplate; andFig. 9 is a section on the line 111l of Fig. 0.

The frame of the machine, shown in dotted lines, is indicated by thenumeral 1, the bed-plate by the numeral 2, the drivingshaft, which isonly partially shown, by 8, and a is the driving-pulley, 5 theneedle-bar actuating strap which is usually driven by an eccentric onthe shaft 3 and suitably connected with the needle-bar to give to theneedle 6 vertical reciprocations. The clothplate '7, in the form shown,is secured by screws 8 to the usual standard of the bedplate, and bymeans of a lug 9 and a screw 10 passing therethrough to the arm or frameof the machine. The cloth-plate is provided with the rear verticallyextending flange 11 and adjacent thereto with the downwardly inclinedchute-portion 12 which extends substantially half the length of thecloth-plate and also half the width of the latter from the middle to therear edge thereof. This chute is also provided with the diagonal slot orgroove 13 extending from about midway of the rear end of the chute tothe corner at the junction of the front side and front end of saidchute. The slot 13 is covered by the guardplate let, which latter iscountersunk in, so as to be flush with the surface of, the bottom of thechute 12, adjacent the slot, and also extends over the latter to nearlyits rear edge, leaving the guard 1% free from the bottom of the chute tothus provide the open slot 13 clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Atthe rearend of the chute in the wall 15, an aperture 16 is provided over whichpartially extends the angular end 17 of the guard-plate, the other endof which guardplate is also upturned as at 18, Fig. 2, to provide aguide for the trimming of the work and also to prevent said end 18 fromcatching or snagging the edge of the work as it is fed over thecloth-plate. The function of the thread-slot and guard is to lead thethread from the pull-off generally inclicated by 19, which may be of anyconventional form, but in this instance is in all material respectsidentical with that made the subject-matter of my application, SerialNo. 275,525, filed of even date herewith. The thread, passing from thepull-off, is passed from below the cloth-plate through the opening 16under the angular end 17 of the guard 14, and then slid along under thelatter in the groove 13, in which latter it lies along the bottom of thechute 12. Being led past the upper end of the guard-plate 14, the threadis passed through the eyes of either a spreader or looper and is then inposition for cooperation with the other elements of the stitch-formingmechanism. Obviously, the thread referred to may go to a looper, aspreader, or any other lower threadmanipulating device of a stitchforming organization.

The cloth-plate of the machine. at its front end, is provided with thelens or transparent disk 21, held in place by the flange 22 at the topof the cloth-plate and by the ring 23 at the bottom of the cloth platewhich is suitably held by the screw 24, see Fig. 5. This constructionenables the operator to get a view of the feed-adjusting device which isordinarily located on the outer end of the driving-shaft and immediatelybelow the lens 21. The depending web 25 at the front end of theclothplate, see Fig. 3, is provided with the handholes 26, through whichthe operator may extend his fingers for the purpose of adjusting thefeed-regulating device which is in View through the lens 21.

The cloth-plate is provided at its front end with the throat-plate 27,the same being set down therein so that the surfaces of both are flush.The throat-plate is held in place by means of the screw 28 passingthrough an aperture 20 in the rear end thereof and tapped into thecloth-plate, and at its front end is held by means of the plate 29secured in place by the screw 30 passing therethrough and tapped intothe cloth-plate. The cooperating ends of the holding-plate 29 and of thethroat-plate 27 are correspondingly beveled at 31 so as to fit closelyand have their surfaces flush. The throatplate is provided with theusual feedslots 32, with a cut-out portion 33 at one side for theoperation of trimmer-blades, and with a tongue 34 over which the loopsof an overedge stitch are formed and over which a spreader may operateas usual. At its rear end, on the bottom, the throat-plate is providedwith the two beveled depressions or grooves 35 in which operate thebeveled ends 36 of the adjusting plate 37, the latter being providedwith the elongated slot 38 and surrounding countersink 39, the slotbeing for the reception of the shank of the screw 40 and the countersinkfor the reception of the head 41 of said screw. The adjusting plate issunk in the cloth-plate so that its upper surface Will be flush with thesurface of the throat-plate and at the rear end of the latter so thatthe ends 36 may cooperate with the beveled grooves 35 for the purpose ofraising or lowering the throat-plate in its seat. Cooperating with thethroat-plate is the presser-foot 42 pivoted at 43 so as to swingvertically on the foot-shank 44 carried by the presserbar 45. It Will benoted that the pivot 43 of the foot on its shank is in the verticalplane which cuts the longitudinal axis of the needle and the axis of thepivot longitudinally. The presser-foot 42 is provided with the usualupturned toe at its forward end and also with the tongue 46 whichcooperates with the tongue on the throatplate, and just in rear of saidtongue is provided with the convexed or inverted U- shaped portion 47which has the function of permitting the bulk of the work in thestitching-line to pass the presser-foot without drag or retardation;that is to say, when the overedge stitch has been applied to the work,the latter becomes materially thickened at the edge and would, if thefoot were fiat, exert considerable friction thereon. By arching thefoot, as shown and described, in rear of the stitching-point and beyondthe tongues over which the loops are formed, retardation of the work isavoided as well as drag upon and lateral sag of the work, and thisnotwithstanding vertical adjustments of the throat-plate. By pivotingthe foot as described, adjustments of the throatplate may be made, as,for example, shown by the dotted lines 48 in Fig. 4, without changingthe relative cooperative action of the foot therewith. In other words,as the throat-plate is adjusted vertically, the foot accommodates itselfto the latter and maintains its cooperative relation therewith; and, inaddition, the pivotal connection of the foot with its shank enables itto yield both at its front and rear ends to varying thicknesses of workpassing thereunder, and irrespective of the action of the foot,independently or in cooperation with the throat-plate, the arch thereofat 47 permits the free passage of the work along and adjacent thestitching line. Moreover, by pivoting the foot in the plane of thelongitudinal axis of the needle, its pressure upon the work about thestitching point is uniform at all times and under all conditions andespecially if care is taken to so proportion the foot, as contemplatedby my invention, as to cause a balance of the same upon its pivot. Inorder to prevent lateral twist of the footupon its shank and strain uponthe pivot 43, the foot, at the side of the arch 47, is provided with avertical portion 42 constituting a brace which cooperates with theadjacent side of the shank 44, said brace 42 extending somewhat in rearand above the said arch and, by its weight, helping to balance the footproperly upon its pivot.

Beside the holding-plate 29 is pivoted the guard-plate 49 by means ofscrew 50 passed therethrough and tapped into the clothplate, the plate49 being set in a recess or sunken portion 51 of said cloth-plate.Adjacent the stitching and trimming points, the cloth-plate is providedwith the opening 52, Fig. 2, which is almost completely covered by thehead 53 of the guard-plate 49, said head being provided with the notchor recess 54 in its front edge and with the upturned tongue 55 at itsfree end. Viewing Fig. 1 it will be seen that the head of theguard-plate, when in position, leaves but a small space at 54 throughwhich a spreader may operate, it being found that this small space isall that is required for the proper operation of said spreader which isconstructed and actuated in accordance with my invention made thesubject of my application, Serial No. 227,7 55, filed September 9, 1905.But when the guard-plate is Withdrawn as shown in Fig. 2, the largeropening 52 in the cloth-plate is disclosed, and through this openingadjustments of the spreader may be made and the latter may also bethreaded. The guard-plate is held in position by means of the rotaryeccentric disk 56 suitably held by the screw 57 said disk engaging theouter edge of the head 53 of the guard-plate. The upturned tongue 55 ofthe guard-plate cooperates with the upturned end 18 of the thread-guardand assists in shunting the trimming of the edge of the work into thechute. The frontedge of the guardplate 49 is provided with the lug 58beveled at 59 which cooperates with the correspondingly beveled portion60 of the throat-plate, the two parts thus interlocking for intimaterelation of the parts, neat finish and securing proper cooperation. Thehead of the guard-plate is provided with the overhanging guard 61 solocated as to prevent the fingers of the operator reaching a positionwhich might result in injury from the trimmer blades. Moreover, thisguard-plate operates as a handle by means of which the plate, which isresilient, may be sprung over the disk 56, to assume the position asshown in Fig. 2. Also, for the purpose of preventing injury to thefingers of the operator, the presser-foot is provided with a guard 62,secured to the top of its toe by a screw (33, said guard being angularin form and having the vertical portion Gel, Figs. 1 and 3, extendinglongitudinally of the foot and substantially in parallelism with theguard-plate 49.

From the foregoing detailed description, it will be seen that thethroat-plate is adjustable on, and relatively to, the work-plate bytilting the same at its rear end through the medium of the plate 37,which is adjustable longitudinally in the countersink of the work-plate.This results in causing the throat-plate to, so to speak, pivot on thework-plate at its forward end. The tilting or lifting of thethroat-plate vertically on the work-plate results in a retarding actionon the work passing thereover about and behind the stitching point, orpath of reciprocation of the needle. Cooperating with the saidthroat-plate, to aid in effecting the retardation of the work, is thepivot-allysupported presser-foot, the pivot of which is in a planecutting the presser-foot at a rightangle to its length and also thelongitudinal axis of the needle. By thus pivoting the foot, the pressurethereof is imposed upon the work around the needle-penetrating pointand, in consequence, when the throat-plate is tilted vertically, asshown by dotted lines in Fig. t, the action of the foot and throatplateis to impede the progress of the work under the presser-foot and overthe throatplate. This retarding action results in permitting the feed topush the work up to the stitching point faster than it carries the workaway from the stitching point. As a result of this operation of thefeed, the work, if it be knit-goods, will be fulled or crowded, whichmeans that, if the work is stretched during its travel to the stitchingposition, such stretch will be eliminated, or, if the work approachesthe stitching position in normal position, the wales thereof will becrowded together so as to compact the same and produce what istechnically known as fulling. If the work be woven fabric, the result offeeding the same to the stitching position faster than it is carriedaway therefrom, or the result of retarding the work at and in rear ofthe stitching position, is shir ring or crimping the work incontradistinction to both fulling and rutliing, or gathering. Thepivotal action of the presser-foot compensates for varying thicknessesand maintains the proper cooperative action of said foot with thethroat-plate under all its adjustments. The arching of the foot, asindicated at 47, permits the seam to pass freely without extraordinaryretardation beyond such as is produced by the tiltingof thethroat-plate. The guard-plate L9, in the matter of its structuralfeatures, closes a somewhat large opening in the work-plate, reducing itto a size which is just suflicient to permit the free action of thespreader of an overedge stitching mechanism and prevents the work frombeing interfered with or becoming soiled, and at the same time permitsthe spreader and looper below the clothplate to be reached without thenecessity of removing the cloth-plate and obviating the necessity ofhaving the usual sliding cover-plates, which are so common in sewingmachines and which are objectionable, since they add to the cost of themachine in many ways.

From the above description it will be seen that I have produced acombination of elements and cooperating parts, having among otheradvantages the following: ready means are provided for manipulating thespreader or looper thread and for threading said elements and saidthread lies guarded from soil, entanglement or interference; a simplemeans is provided by which the work may be retarded to any extentdesired for the purpose of fulling or shirring the same; a combinationof cooperating parts is produced whereby, irrespective of the amount ofadj ustment of the throat-plate for the purposes stated, andirrespective of varying thicknesses of work, the action of thepresser-foot on the work and relatively to the throat plate remainsunchanged; simple and ethcient means are provided for guarding theopening through which the spreader works; eflicient means are providedfor carrying off the trimming of the work to prevent it from interferingwith the stitch-forming mechanism; the operator is guarded from injuryby the trimmer-blades; means are provided which enable the spreader orlooper to be threaded, adjusted, or examined without removing thecloth-plate; the work can be fed under and past the presser-foot withoutdrag, retardation or lateral sag; and con venient means are provided formanipulating the feed-adjusting device and seeing the latter during theadjusting operation.

Having thus described my invention,what I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent is:

1. A thread-guide for sewing machines comprising a work-plate providedwith a groove or depression therein in which the thread runs, and aguard-plate extending partially over said groove to shield the threadbut permit the instant threading thereof.

2. In combination with the work-plate of a sewing machine provided witha depression adjacent the stitching point, and an opening in thedepressed portionbeside the stitching point, a guard-plate pivoted tothe work-plate and located in the depressed portion, said guard-platehaving a head which substantially closes the said opening of thework-plate, but leaves a sufficient opening through which a spreader mayoperate.

3. In combination with the work-plate of a sewing machine, of athroat-plate carried by the work-plate, the latter being provided with adepressed portion, and an opening adjacent the throat-plate, and aguard-plate carried by the work-plate having a portion for substantiallyclosing the said opening in the latter, but leaving a sufficient openingthrough which a spreader may operate, and cooperating means on theguard-plate and the throat-plate for holding the former in properposition.

4:. In combination with the work-plate of a sewing machine,having anopening adjacent the stitching point through which a spreader mayextend, of a guard-plate pivotally supported on the work-plate andhaving a por tion which substantially closes said opening, but leaves asuflicient opening through which a spreader may operate, and means onthe work-plate for engaging the guard-plate to hold it positively inproper position.

5. In combination with the work-plate of a sewing machine having anopening therein adjacent the stitching point through which a spreadermay operate, of a guard-plate pivoted to the work-plate, and having aportion for substantially closing the said opening, said guard-platehaving a notch or recess in its side adjacent the stitching pointthrough which said spreader may work when the guard-plate is in positionto cover the opening in the work-plate.

6. In combination with the work-plate of a sewing machine having anopening therein adjacent the stitching point, of a guardplate pivoted tothe work-plate and having a head for substantially closing the saidopening, but leaving a suflicient opening through which a spreader mayoperate, means "for holding the guard-plate in position to close thesaid opening, and said guard-plate being made of flexible materialwhereby it may be sprung so as to pass the said holding means.

7. In combination with the work-plate of a sewing machine having anopening therein adjacent the stitching point, of a guardplate carried bythe work-plate and having a head for covering said opening, means forholding the guard-plate in operative position, and said guard-platebeing provided with a handle for lifting the guard-plate over theholding means.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto signed my name in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

JOHN P. WVEIS.

WVitnesses M. VENEKAMP, J. REED.

Copies of this patent may be obtained. for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. G.

